Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2's Ken Roczen was again an entertaining and effective protagonist on the RM-Z250 in the FIM Motocross World Championship as the German scored third position overall at a sunny Agueda circuit in front of 14,000 spectators for the Grand Prix of Portugal.
The 16 year old took yet another podium result - keeping a 100% record - at this fourth round of 15 in the series and across a Portuguese terrain that was choppy and bumpy thanks to persistent rainfall on Saturday and part of Sunday.
Roczen flew to second place in the first moto of 35 minutes and 2 laps, the Suzuki working well in the demanding conditions and a recent engine modification made by the team assisting the teenager in his quest for GP success at the venue where he sensationally introduced himself to the world in 2009.
The second race was a tense affair as Roczen kept on the rear wheel of leader and World Champion Marvin Musquin for virtually the entire distance. As the pair prepared for a gripping finale, Roczen crashed as a result of misjudgement by a backmarker and hit the ground. He had to complete the last two laps with a broken foot-peg but reached the flag in sixth to ensure the bottom step of the rostrum by one point.
Arnaud Tonus had a solid day and although he wasn't quite able to stamp any kind of authority over the tricky layout he did achieve his goals of a two top-10 finishes. Ninth and seventh positions led to sixth overall and his fourth consecutive result inside the first 10.
Roczen has conceded the red plate to Musquin and trails the Frenchman by 12 points in the championship standings. Tonus maintains fifth place and is two points ahead of Zach Osborne and 17 behind Steven Frossard.
In the second round of seven in the FIM Women's World Championship Larissa Papenmeier was seventh overall. Both of the ladies' races were run in wet conditions as Moto1 took place on Saturday and the second moto occurred first on Sunday. The German was unlucky in the first sprint as Stephanie Laier crashed in front of her on the first corner and she had to come back to 11th from last. In Moto2 she took sixth and the 2009 runner-up is currently sixth in the championship table and needs 17 points to break into the top three.
Round five (and round three for the women) will take place next weekend at the Bellpuig circuit, over an hour west from the city of Barcelona for the Grand Prix of Catalunya.
Ken Roczen:
"Last year was my first GP race here and I did well and I expected to do better this time. I had two good starts and the second moto was cool, especially to race with Marvin. We were both riding smooth and fast and the moto was long. It was a shame about the crash but there was nothing I could do. The backmarker was in front of us from the pit-lane, nearly half a lap, and he did not move despite all the blue flags. I made a small mistake coming to the uphill triple and could not jump it, so I made a double and he landed on top of me and we had a pretty big crash. My footpeg came off, so I just wanted to stay on the bike and get some points. It was not easy to pass here but if you have a good eye then you can normally find somewhere to try."
Arnaud Tonus:
"The goal was to get two top-10 finishes today so I am pleased I could do it. I wanted to stay consistent because I could not really find my rhythm on that track; I kept focussed and did not want to crash as it was very slick out there. The start was so important because overtaking was not easy at all but the bike worked really well and I was happy with how I could get out of the gate. Overall we got some good points for the championship position."
MX2 Moto1: 1. Marvin Muuusquin (FRA, KTM), 39:09.201; 2. Ken Roczen (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), +0:03.389; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:03.997; 4. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), +1:02.518; 5. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), +1:17.802; 6. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), +1:20.932; 7. Harri Kullas (FIN, Yamaha), +1:23.221; 8. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), +1:24.333; 9. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), +1:47.796; 10. Matiss Karro (LAT, Suzuki), +1:50.706.
MX2 Moto2: 1. Marvin Musquin (FRA, KTM), 40:09.015; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), +0:08.230; 3. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), +0:14.284; 4. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), +0:20.032; 5. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), +0:32.628; 6. Ken Roczen (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), +0:50.167; 7. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), +0:51.004; 8. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), +1:03.928; 9. Jake Nicholls (GBR, KTM), +1:05.055; 10. Dennis Verbruggen (BEL, KTM), +1:16.926.
MX2 Overall result: 1. Marvin Musquin (FRA, KTM), 50 points; 2. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 42 p.; 3. Ken Roczen (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 37 p.; 4. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 36 p.; 5. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), 26 p.; 6. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 26 p.; 7. Joel Roelants (BEL, KTM), 26 p.; 8. Harri Kullas (FIN, Yamaha), 22 p.; 9. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 21 p.; 10. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 21 p.
MX2 World Championship standings (after 4 of 15 rounds): 1. Marvin Musquin (FRA, KTM), 179 points; 2. Ken Roczen (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 167 p.; 3. Jeffrey Herlings (NED, KTM), 164 p.; 4. Steven Frossard (FRA, Kawasaki), 133 p.; 5. Arnaud Tonus (SUI, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 116 p.; 6. Zach Osborne (USA, Yamaha), 114 p.; 7. Shaun Simpson (GBR, KTM), 105 p.; 8. Jeremy van Horebeek (BEL, Kawasaki), 101 p.; 9. Harri Kullas (FIN, Yamaha), 83 p.; 10. Christophe Charlier (FRA, Yamaha), 81 p.
Women's World Championship Overall result: 1. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 45 points; 2. Livia Lancelot (FRA, KTM), 43 p.; 3. Maria Franke (GER, KTM), 42 p.; 4. Natalie Kane (GBR, KTM), 38 p.; 5. Chiara Fontanesi (ITA, Yamaha), 30 p.; 6. Marielle De Mol (NED, Yamaha), 27 p.; 7. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 26 p.; 8. Elin Mann (SWE, KTM), 26 p.; 9. Anne Borchers (GER, Suzuki), 25 p.; 10. Nicky van Wordragen (NED, Yamaha), 23 p.
Women's World Championship standings (after 2 of 7 rounds): 1. Stephanie Laier (GER, KTM), 95 points; 2. Maria Franke (GER, KTM), 80 p.; 3. Livia Lancelot (FRA, KTM), 76 p.; 4. Chiara Fontanesi (ITA, Yamaha), 72 p.; 5. Natalie Kane (GBR, KTM), 68 p.; 6. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, Teka Suzuki Europe World MX2), 59 p.; 7. Elin Mann (SWE, KTM), 53 p.; 8. Marielle De Mol (NED, Yamaha), 47 p.; 9. Anne Borchers (GER, Suzuki), 43 p.; 10. Elien De Winter (BEL, KTM), 41 p.
